Fantastic Trains by Neil Enock

Author:Neil Enock
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: fantasy, science fiction, steampunk, slipstream, apocalyptic, horror, magick, paranormal, speculative fiction, urban fantasy, short reads, short stories, short story, supernatural, indie author, indie authors, indie pub, paper backs, e-Book, book, books, story books, Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBook, google PLAY
Publisher: EDGE-Lite
Published: 2019-07-21T16:00:00+00:00

The Cake Run

by Nick Svolos

Reddeth plucked a hunk of burning coal out of the firebox with a pair of tongs, lit his cheroot, and tossed it back. Fethro, the engineer, kept an eye on the engine’s gauges, his hands busy making adjustments, and still managed to glower his disapproval at Reddeth as the train powered into the downgrade.

The orc twitched his massive shoulders. “Beats stickin’ my head in there.”

The dwarf sneered, “Ain’t you got somewhere else to be, greenskin?”

“Yeah. But your boss is payin’ me to be here.” Reddeth levered his bulk up the ladder out of the engine and found a refreshingly dwarf-free spot on the tender to wait out the long, dull ride. Thick smoke and steam billowed past him, but he didn’t mind.

“Freekin’ dorfs,” he muttered. This wasn’t his sort of job, but insolvency had provided Reddeth with a powerful incentive to lower his standards. Low enough to babysit the weekly coal shipment from Mount Fumidor to Karith Dundol. Reddeth grimaced as the dwarfish names crossed his mind, making it itch. He wished there was a war going on. A way to make enough money to buy passage out of this Bog-forsaken country for someplace decent, with ceilings at a proper height. He’d had his fill of walking around in a stoop all the time.

Still, sitting up here in the sun, the wind whipping by and threatening to pluck away his cigar, he had to admit, this was easy money. It wasn’t like someone would actually rob a shipment of coal. The only enemies he had to worry about were boredom and the train’s crew. Dwarves weren’t much for the company of orcs, and the feeling was mutual. Too much bad blood. The bearded little runts loved to dwell on grievances, and his people had a talent for their manufacture.

To Reddeth, these guys all looked the same from the neck up, just grumpy masses of hair with noses and eyes sticking out. Half the time, he couldn’t even see that, just the bottom of a tankard. Their women weren’t much better.

About an hour later, nature called, so he took a walk down to the end of the train. From his position on the caboose’s roof, he found himself gazing at the sky behind them to pass the time.

Three dark pinpricks hung suspended in the pale blue of the sky. At first he thought he was just looking at a few hawks. Only, they weren’t in a gyre. Hawks don’t hover out here, do they? Naw, must be somethin’ else. Reddeth mulled this over and noticed another detail.

They were getting closer.

He squatted down and knocked on the roof. “Hey, Grayson, wake up down there. Ya see this?”

The brakeman called back, “What, you’re askin’ if I seen you pissing off my roof? You did a fine job. Hardly any splash back at all. Congratulations.”

“No, you idiot. Look at the sky.”

The three objects were close enough now that Reddeth could pick out a few details. Large wings, sharp little spikes sticking out from where the bones joined.

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